Methods for destroying missiles, aircraft, re-entry vehicles and other targets generally fall into three classifications: “hit-to-kill” vehicles, blast fragmentation warheads, and kinetic energy rod warheads.
“Hit-to-kill” vehicles are typically launched to a position proximate a re-entry vehicle or other target via a missile, such as the Patriot, Trident or MX. The kill vehicle is generally navigable and designed to strike a target re-entry vehicle rendering it inoperable. Countermeasures, however, may be employed to avoid the “hit-to-kill” vehicle. Moreover, biological warfare bomblets and chemical warfare submunition payloads may be carried by some threats and one or more of the bomblets or submunition payloads may survive, subsequently causing casualties even if the “hit-to-kill” vehicle accurately strikes its target.
Blast fragmentation type warheads have been designed to be carried by conventional missiles. Blast fragmentation warheads, unlike “hit-to-kill” vehicles, are generally not navigable; rather, when the missile carrier reaches a position proximate an enemy re-entry vehicle or other target, a pre-formed band of metal on the warhead is detonated and the pieces are accelerated with high velocity to strike the target. The fragments, however, are not always effective at destroying the target and, again, bomblets and/or submunition payloads may survive to cause casualties.
R. Lloyd's textbook, “Conventional Warhead Systems Physics and Engineering Design,” Progress in Astronautics and Aeronautics (AIAA) Book Series, Vol. 179, ISBN 1-56347-255-4, 1998, incorporated herein by this reference, provides additional details concerning “hit-to-kill” vehicles and blast fragmentation type warheads. Chapter 5 of the Lloyd reference proposes a kinetic energy rod warhead.
The two primary advantages of kinetic energy rod warheads are: (1) they do not rely on precise navigation, as is the case with “hit-to-kill” vehicles; and (2) they provide improved penetration as compared with blast fragmentation warheads.
Kinetic energy rod warheads have not fully emerged from the design phase of their development cycle nor have they been widely accepted. The primary components associated with theoretical kinetic energy rod warheads proposed to date are a hull, a projectile core or bay in the hull (including a number of discrete projectiles), and an explosive charge in the hull about the projectile bay with explosive shields. When the explosive charge is detonated, the projectiles are deployed and dispersed.
The shaped projectiles, however, may tend to break and/or tumble in their deployment. Still other projectiles may approach the target at such a high oblique angle that they do not effectively penetrate the target. See, for example, “Aligned Rod Lethality Enhanced Concept for Kill Vehicles,” R. Lloyd “Aligned Rod Lethality Enhancement Concept For Kill Vehicles” 10th AIAA/BMDD TECHNOLOGY CONF., Jul. 23-26, Williamsburg, Va., 2001 incorporated herein by this reference.